Groundcover, the Good, Bad, and Ugly

April 17, 2023April 17, 2023 ~ Loreeebee ~ Leave a comment

Groundcover is an integral part of most gardens. Groundcover is self-explanatory, basically plants that cover the bare ground, usually between larger (taller) plants. The use of ground cover in gardens helps to minimize the appearance of weeds, which is always beneficial. There are thousands of varieties out there, some good, some not so good (in my opinion) and some downright ugly! Let me help you decipher some of my favourites and others that I encounter on a daily basis in my gardening business.

The Best

For Part Sun

My favourite groundcovers for part sun to shade include sweet woodruff and lamium. Each perky stem of sweet woodruff sports six shiny green leaves and tiny white flowers in spring. Even after flowering this groundcover remains attractive all summer long. Sweet woodruff requires no deadheading either, which is an added bonus.

Lamium’s flowers are flashier, either pale pink or lavender in colour. Its variegated foliage (green and white) also remains attractive all season. Deadheading after blooming will create a second bloom time too.

I guess that’s what I like most about these two groundcovers; even when not in bloom they look great. Although both spread, they do so in small clumps but are not invasive. Both are shallow-rooted, so easy to remove from areas you don’t want them. I use both of these as edging plants in my gardens as well. I have also used lamium in shady hanging baskets as it trails nicely as it grows.

Groundcover For Full Sun

For hot, sunny and dry spots in the garden, including tucked between or cascading over rocks, or even in containers, you can’t beat sedums or stonecrops. Both come in a wide variety of bloom colours. I especially love the dragon’s blood (red) stonecrop and the cute rosettes of hen and chicks. This picture shows stonecrop in a container but it makes great groundcover as well.

stonecrop and sedums in a hot, sunny container

Invasive Groundcover

Violets, creeping thyme, and periwinkle make a successful groundcover as well, but they can all be invasive…

My Least Favourite Groundcover

Some of the not so nice (looking) groundcover that crops up uninvited in gardens are clover and mosses. Clover is cute looking too, some people actually confuse sweet woodruff with clover leaves. However, clover is much weedier and more invasive. I don’t mind clover in my lawns, but pull it out of my gardens. Some people encourage moss to grow between their stonework patios and walkways, not a look I am fond of.

Conclusions

The only time ground cover in your gardens does not work well is if you prefer mulch between your plants. Not that you can’t have both, the problem is that most groundcover is low growing so the mulch can overpower and even smother it. For this reason, I don’t usually recommend both mulch and ground cover in the same garden.

As I was snapping pictures of these varieties of groundcover the other day, I spied a garter snake peaking out at me from the cover of a hosta. As a kid, I used to think they were called gardener snakes, most likely because I saw them mostly in gardens. I probably (unintentionally) disturbed this cutie’s sun bask. By the time I focused on him, he was off, slithering away down the stone path to safety…

Plant Snob, I Confess

November 15, 2017April 18, 2023 ~ Loreeebee ~ 2 Comments

Ok, I will admit it, I am a snob, a plant snob that is! Some plants I find just too common and boring. For example, “Look at that beautiful hosta!” said no one ever. Or spirea either for that matter, unless you are talking one of the bridal wreath variety, then you may just hear or think that, but only if it is pruned correctly.

An Aversion to Hostas if You’re a Plant Snob

I appear to have developed an aversion to hostas, probably because people have overused them in their gardens. The only time I enjoy them is in the very early spring when their green spikes are one of the first signs of new growth to emerge from the soil as it thaws out here in the Ottawa area. In the summer they get eaten by slugs and earwigs, and in the fall they turn mushy and slimy…

Alternatives to Hostas for this Plant Snob

So, what perennials do I prefer to hostas for the edges of my gardens? Here are my choices:

Perennial Geraniums

For shady areas, I like perennial geraniums. They are one of the first perennials to green up in the spring, require no maintenance whatsoever, and maintain their neat, non-sprawling (most varieties) mounded shape. They do spread throughout the garden, but are very shallow-rooted, so easy to remove from places you do not want them to spread to. These geraniums are great for planting under trees, even evergreen trees where nothing else will thrive.

In fact, I planted lots of these versatile plants as ground cover under the evergreens we limbed up at the hospice I volunteer at. They look beautiful!

Lamium

Another good choice for an edging plant in shady areas is lamium. Its variegated leaves, reblooming pale flowers, and tidy habit make it one of my favourites..

Heucheras

For part shade to part sun locations in the garden, I am loving heucheras these days. Some varieties tolerate more sun than others, so be sure to read the tags.

Heucheras come in a variety of colors from palest green to bright chartreuse to orangy-brown to reddish-brown to deep wine red. Leaf shapes vary too from smooth and rounded, to almost maple-leaf-like, to curly, lettuce-leaf-like.

They look good all summer, need no fall cleanup or protection, and survive our cold winters with no problem. A simple tug to remove any crispy leaves in the spring and they are good to go.

By the way, heuchera is pronounced with a hard c. I will never forget that after I was chastised for mispronouncing it by a 93-year-old client.

heuchera

Sedum or Stonecrop

My first choice for full sun edging or container plants is those in the sedum or stonecrop families. As succulents, sedums and stonecrops are all drought-tolerant, thriving in hot, dry areas, especially next to stone walkways where not much else will grow.

They too come in a variety of colors and shapes, in fact, look especially nice (I think) when varieties are mixed together randomly.

So, this season think outside of your comfort zone, and become a plant snob by replacing those boring hostas with a little more pizazz!

Gardens4u in Texas

January 15, 2016January 6, 2022 ~ Loreeebee ~ 1 Comment

In Corpus Christi, Texas this week for my sister’s birthday, I just couldn’t stay out of the dirt. For her birthday gift, I promised her a new garden in her front yard, one that she could not kill. Seems like she did not inherit the same green thumb I did.

First, for inspiration, we went to the Corpus Christi Botanical Gardens to see what will survive in this hot environment. Instead of cold hardy as I am used to in the Ottawa, Ontario area of Canada, I had to think heat and drought tolerant…

We chose succulents, agave, cactus, sedum, aloe and various stonecrops for ground cover and trailers. All are drought tolerant once established and can handle the extreme heat here in Texas.

Hopefully this new garden renovation survives the heat and drought conditions in my sister’s Texas yard.